A Nightmare Within a Dream
by ZeroLeFox
Summary: Zee is 17 and an engineering student at WaterField University. Struggling with money Zee becomes the night guard at Freddy Fazbear's Pizzeria, where strange things happen and his non-belief of ghosts gets turned around in a complete 180. People from his past he hoped he would never see again start to re-appear and he's forced to live through hell and back to keep hold of his sanity
1. Chapter 1 The Dream

**A/N: Welcome to "A Nightmare Within a Dream" this is the first fanfiction I've ever written, so please forgive me for any grammar, spelling, and punctuation errors. I'm not the best at writing even if I do enjoy doing it. I hope whoever reads this enjoys the story. So go on and read the first chapter! Go on! Shoo!**

**A/N2: This note is for those who have read the old "A Nightmare Within a Dream." I did not like the direction the story was going. I had no plan for it and was just writing what came off the top of my head. I didn't like it and wanted to start over so this is the new story. I apologize to those who liked the old story. I hope you enjoy this new re-write of it.**

Chapter 1

The Dream

"Help! Please, someone, help me!" I cried, banging against the locked metal door. "I don't want to die!"

"Where do you think you're going?" whispered a cold, deadly voice into my ear. Cold icy breath snaking down my neck.

Before I could turn around I felt blinding pain piercing into my back and out through my stomach. Looking down I saw the silver blood-covered tip of a long thin knife protruding from my stomach. And as soon as it appeared it disappeared, being pulled out of my flesh with searing pain. The floor below me shifted into a black void and everything around me disappeared into oblivion. Looking around myself I saw nothing but a black void of nothingness. And then I fell, screaming into the void.

"AAHH!" I shot up from my bed, screaming my head off and drenched in a cold sweat. "J-Just a dream… I-It's just a dream…" I breathed out in relief. Yeah, just a dream. A dream I've had every night since I was 8. Throwing my sheets off my body, I climbed out of bed and made my way out of my room. I stepped out into a tiny living room, connected to an even smaller kitchenette. I had no sofa or TV in my living room, and I hardly ever used the kitchenette, seeing as I didn't usually have enough money for food in the first place.

Glancing at my watch it read 7:03, perfect, 2 more hours till my classes start. My grandfather died a few months ago, and this watch was the only thing he's left me. The watch was silver with tiny black-diamond stars spotted around the clock face. Each number on the watch was also carved from black-diamonds, and the band of the watch was made of fine black leather. And studded along the edge with small silver stars.

Sigh, turning back around and re-entering my room I set about to get ready for the day. Pulling on a pair of jeans, a white T-shirt with a black fox printed on the front and back, my usual black hoodie, and my old and worn-out pair of black and red sneakers. Grabbing the blacked-out, circular shades from my bedside table, and slipping them over my eyes, I was ready for the day.

Combing back my black hair with my fingers, I decided to just head to the college campus, and see if I can help any of the professors with setting up their classes. I grabbed my backpack full of books and left my apartment, locking the door behind me.

Covering my nose with the sleeve of my hoodie, I cringed at how bad the building reeked of drugs and piss. I quickly made my way down the hall towards the stairs, passing the usual cracks that snaked across the wall, and the patches of mold growing in the corners.

Reaching the stairwell doors and throwing them open I ran down the stairs, taking 2 at a time. The stairwell was horrible, constantly littered with trash, me being the only person in this damn building that tries to keep it clean. The railing was probably the worst safety hazard in the building. It was so busted, and covered in so much rust you could catch tetanus by just looking at it.

As I reached the bottom and was about to open the door to the outside world, it swung inwards, an old man in a very smart and expensive-looking suit walking through it.

"Mr. Robinson?" I asked, shocked and confused at the sight of my friendly old landlord dressed up so fancy. He was old, in his 80s I believe, with a few strands of brown hair combed over his balding head, a clean-shaven face, and hazel eyes filled with kindness and wisdom.

"Ah, Zee! Good Morning," smiled Mr. Robinson, "What are you doing up so early?"

"Couldn't sleep, got up early to go help my professors with setting up for their classes," I replied, "What's with the suit, sir?"

"Oh, just some business I had to attend to, nothing you need to worry about, Zee," Mr. Robinson responded, his smile slightly wavering.

"Mr. Robinson, can I ask you a favor?" I'm not sure this is a good idea asking this, I honestly feel bad for asking this but I really need some help.

"Certainly, what can I do for you, Zee?" answered Mr. Robinson, leaning more on his oak and silver cane.

"I… uh… I don't really have a job…" I stuttered out before being interrupted.

"You have until the end of next week." Smiled Mr. Robinson.

"But I didn't even ask you anything yet," I said, stunned at Mr. Robinson's response.

"You were going to ask for an extension on your rent," chuckled the old man.

"Uhh… Yeah, I was," I said, "T-Thank you, sir. I really needed this."

"It's no problem, Zee. Just take care of yourself, you look rather sickly."

It's true, I am starting to not feel well, but I don't have the money to buy medicine so I couldn't really do anything about it. "I'm fine Mr. Robinson, really. I should get going now, I'll see you later, sir," I lied, pushing past him and into the cool fresh, drug and piss free, January air.

-Line Break-

Entering the classroom of my engineering/robotics class, I saw my favorite teacher setting things up. "Professor William," I greeted, walking towards him and dumping my bag down in a chair.

"Mr. Phillips, what are you doing here so early? Class isn't for another hour," asked Prof. William.

"Couldn't sleep, got up and decided to come and see if you needed any help setting up."

"Well, that's very kind of you. And a matter of fact, there is something you can help me with," said the professor, pulling out from under his desk a large cardboard box. "I could use some help setting these many boxes of pars on each desk."

"What are they?" I questioned, moving closer to his desk to get a better look.

"It was supposed to be a surprise, but I think I can let you in on the secret," smiled Prof. William, pulling out of the box smaller basket containers of parts for a tiny robot. "This class, I'm going to have you all build a small robot, to see ahead of time who might pass the upcoming project test, and who will fail."

"Oh right, the test where we have to build our own working robotic machine, right?"

"Just the one! I'm sure you'll pass, you've impressed every professor here with your skills."

"Thank you, sir. But I'm not sure what I'll be doing for the project next month."

"Well, you have some time before you have to decide, now help me with these parts please."

And so I did, taking a few of the baskets full of wires, tools, parts, and power sources (which were just batteries). And helping with anything else I could.

After finishing up, I left the classroom and made my way down the large empty hall to the restrooms. Entering the restroom I instantly went to the sink and turned on the cold water, splashing some into my face, after removing my glasses of course. Ever since I got up this morning, I felt like someone has been watching my every step. Looking at myself in the mirror, my eyes had bags under them, my skin was paler than normal, and my hair was disheveled. I combed my fingers through my hair, trying to straighten it out and getting it to look just a tad nicer; which of course failed. Looking at myself in the mirror, I noticed someone standing in the dark, shadow filled corner of the bathroom. Instantly I shoved my glasses back on and turned towards the figure. Only to find no one was there, just an empty graffiti stained tiled wall.

"Where do you think he could be?" asked an angry and annoying voice outside the restroom.

"How am I suppose to know?" replied a weaselly and as equally annoying voice.

I know these voices all too well. It was Eric and Riley, Vernon was probably with them as well, he (Vernon) doesn't talk much so that's probably why I don't hear him. Eric, Riley, and Vernon, were 3 of the richest people on campus. They mainly bought their way into college instead of studying and getting in legitimately. They are also the people that make my life hard here at WaterField University. The door to the restroom opened, and the 3 people that I hate the most walk-in.

"Zee! Finally! We've been looking everywhere for you!" exclaimed Eric, he was tall at 6 feet and dressed in all black. Black button-up shirt, black leather jacket, black jeans with chains, and a pair of black fancy and expensive-looking shoes. His black hair done up in a crew cut.

"Eric, what do you want? I have no money on me so I got nothing you could want," I replied, trying my best not to just attempt to push past them and run. I had to stand up to them eventually, and today I'm not in a good mood. With having no sleep, no food, and my patience waning thin. I felt like I could slug Eric across the face and break his nose. But I was too scared to get physical... again. Last time I tried to fight back against them I ended up in the local jail for the night.

"You may not have any money but that watch is new," smirked Eric, he glanced at Vernon and Riley and gave them a sharp nod. At their boss's signal, they left the bathroom and stood outside standing watch for anyone who would get in Eric's way.

"Don't you even think about it! This was my grandfather's, and there is no way I'm letting you have it!" I growled, glaring at Eric from behind my glasses.

Eric stepped forward cracking his knuckles, his face morphing from a smirk into anger and disgust. "I'm going to put a murdering bastard, like you in to your place!" said Eric, gritting his teeth.

_M-Murdering? H-How did he find out? I never told anyone! Except for-_ Before I could finish my thought a fist came flying across my face, hitting me square in the jaw. I fell to the floor, the taste of iron overloading my tastebuds, my glasses flying across the bathroom and smashing against a wall. I heaved myself onto my hands and knees, liquid building in my mouth, I took a breath through my nose and spat out what I could. A glob of blood and saliva splatting against the cold tile floor.

Before I could recover, Eric's foot came crashing into my side, hitting me right in the ribs. Landing on my side I curled up into the fetal position, trying my best to block any blows to my stomach and head. Suddenly the assault stopped.

Eric knelt down and yanked me by my hair so I was looking up into his face. "You're a worthless piece of shit! You have no money, no friends, no family, and you don't belong here! Nobody will ever want someone like you!" growled Eric, "I mean come on, who would want to hang out with a murderer, huh?" Eric then slammed my head into the tiled floor, and darkness overtook me.

-Line Break-

Slowly cracking my eyes open, I sat up groaning in pain. My mouth still tastes like blood, my nose was sore, but thankfully not broken, and my sides are hurting so badly I can barely move. I looked at my wrist to check the time on my watch only to find my wrist bare. "Fuck! No no no!" I cried, staring at my wrist, willing my grandfather's watch to return. The watch was the only thing I had left of my grandfather, him being the only person in my entire family that loved and cared about me, unlike my parents. I crawled my way over to my glasses and picked them up. The lenses were cracked, and the frame was bent in several places. But that didn't stop me from putting them back on, I had no desire for the whole school to know I'm a freak, or to see the tears starting to swell in my eyes.

Struggling to my feet, with a great deal of effort and pain, I stumbled over to the sink and washed my mouth out. I left the restroom and headed down the hall back to my class. I pushed the door open to Prof. William talking to the mass of students all sitting at their desks. As soon as I stepped into the room everyone fell silent. Prof. William was looking at me with surprise and concern.

"Mr. Phillips, what… what happened to you?" asked Prof. William, staring at my battered and bruised face.

I remained silent and made my way up a few stairs and slid into my spot on the rows of desks. Everyone was still staring at me, which made me extremely uncomfortable. "Please continue," I whispered, just loud enough for the professor to hear.

Prof. William opened his mouth looking as if he wanted to say something, but closed it and nodded and went back to his lecture. I hardly paid attention to anything he was saying and just dwelled on how I was going to get money to pay Mr. Robinson next week, and what I should do about what just happened. Probably will just leave it alone like always. I need to find a job, and soon. _I owe Mr. Robinson so much money, at least 2 months of rent that I haven't paid._ I thought, until Prof. William announced for everyone to start work on putting together the small robot provided for them.

I smiled to myself and started working on it, putting together all the wiring and parts like it was second nature. Within around 20 minutes, I had finished mine before anyone else and just sat there waiting for the class to end. It took about 30 minutes before most of the class finished theirs, only a few stragglers were left behind still messing around with their robot.

"Okay, that concludes this class for the day, don't forget the robotics test next month. Make sure you have your ideas ready and start preparing for it," announced Prof. William, as he started to pack up his brown leather bag. Grabbing my bag and rushing down the stairs to the door I was about to exit when Prof. William called to me. "Mr. Phillips! Wait I need to speak to you!"

Ignoring him I just ran out the door, sprinting down the hall and outside into the cool January air. I made my way to the front of the campus, students, and teachers staring at me with a mixture of shock, and worry. A few teachers tried to stop me and ask what had happened to my face, but I shrugged them off without answering and went on my way.

Coming to the front entrance of the campus, which was blocked by a fancy and intricate wrought iron gate, I walked up to the security guard station. It was just a small brick building with a single-window facing the road that wound up into the campus. Knocking on the window I waited for the Security Guard to open up.

"Zee? What the hell are ya doing here mate?" asked Walter Jackson, the front gate Security Guard, as he slid back the window to speak to me.

"Hey, Walt. I'm going home early today, can you open the gate please?" I responded, keeping my gaze down at my feet.

"So what happened?" questioned Walt, raising an eyebrow. "You're the best student here, and you've never gone home early before."

Sighing, I looked up and heard him breathe in sharply at the sight of my face. My glasses were cracked and nearly shattered, bruises and a few cuts, from when my skin split with getting hit around, covering my face, and my lips and teeth were slightly stained red from blood.

"Just open the gate please," I said, wiping away a drop of blood from the corner of my mouth with the sleeve of my hoodie.

"Y-Yeah… Sure thing Zee," stuttered Wal, he turned and flipped a switch, causing the black wrought iron gate to slowly swing inwards. I thanked him and left, hearing the sound of the gate shut behind me with a loud cling.

Walking along the cracked concrete sidewalk, I started to think of what to do about Eric. _Should I call the police? Tell someone? No. Last time I did that I was the one who spent the night in jail. Let's not dwell on that right now. First things first, getting a job._ Just as I thought that a piece of paper being carried on the breeze smacked into my face.

"Gah! What the fuck!?" I exclaimed, ripping the piece of paper off my face. Looking down at the sheet of black and white, I noticed it was a page out of this week's newspaper. And right in the middle was an advertisement reading: **"Freddy Fazbear's Pizzeria Now Hiring! Job Position: Night Guard. Requirements: None. $120 a week and free pizza on your first night! Come join the Fazbear family today!"**

"Freddy Fazbear's? Why does that sound familiar?" I wondered to myself, folding the sheet of newspaper and sliding it into my pocket, continuing my way back to my shithole of an apartment.

-Line Break-

Entering my apartment I found my mail piled on the floor, due to being pushed through the mail slot. Picking up the mail from the ground I ran to my bedroom, my heart racing in excitement when I saw a letter with a wax seal on it. Pushing my door open and dropping my keys on my bedside table I jumped onto my bed and started tearing open the letter. I pulled out 3 pieces of thick and expensive-looking paper. I already knew what it was. It was a response to my application request for an engineering job at _Ralf's Robotic WonderWorld of Technology_. Ralf's was known worldwide as the best technology-based theme park and robotics company ever! People would kill to get a chance to work in that place, literally. And it's my dream job to be an engineer there and work on their animatronics. I've always loved robots, and Ralf's has the most advanced animatronics in the world. It would be a dream come true just to be able to work on one of them.

Unfolding the first slip of paper I read: "_Dear Mr. Zee Phillips, Thank you for requesting an application to join our wondrous family here at 'Ralf's Robotic Wonder World of Technology.' Inclosed are two slips of paper, the first is the application letter. Please fill out the application letter completely, if it is not fully filled out the application will automatically be rejected. The second slip is for any more specifications such as what type of job you are applying for, your qualifications, the schools you attended, etc… The more information we have the more likely you will be accepted. Due to so many people requesting jobs here at 'Ralf's Robotic WonderWorld of Technology,' you will receive our response within two to three months of us receiving your response. Sincerely, Alice Jackem, Manager of 'Ralf's Robotic WonderWorld of Technology.'"_

Scrambling out of my bed I grabbed a pen and started filling out the application papers. Once I finished I sealed it in the provided envelope they had sent me. Looking at the time my clock read: 12:06. I pulled the sheet of newspaper out of my pocket and unfolded it, re-reading the jobs section and skimming over the news section. I glimpsed something about some convict getting released early for good behavior before my eyes fell upon that same job application as before. Kind of hard to miss, seeing as it's right in the middle of the page.

**"Freddy Fazbear's Pizzeria Now Hiring! Job Position: Night Guard. Requirements: None. $120 a week and free pizza on your first night! Come join the Fazbear family today!"**

Sighing, I crumpled the newspaper up and threw it into the trash bin by my bed. "Might as well check it out, and post my letter on my way there. And free pizza too? That doesn't sound too bad," as if on cue my stomach rumbled loudly, causing a slight twinge of pain. Probably because I haven't eaten in a long time. Making up my mind to check out the job offer, I got up from my bed and started to change out of my dirty and slightly blood-stained clothes.

-Line Break-

They watched as the boy they were paid to stalk, made his way into a shithole apartment building. Hell, that place should be condemned on how bad it looks. What was so special about this kid, that their employer would pay so much money to keep tabs on him? But it wasn't their place to question their employer's motives or what they were doing. All they had to do was follow orders, get paid, and leave. Simple right? Not so much. With this kind of job, and with who their employer was, you don't just get paid and leave when you feel like it. All they knew was, there were no loose ends. Period. So, they had no choice but to stalk and keep tabs on the boy named, Zee Phillips. Then their phone rang. Picking it up and holding it to their ear they began to speak to the person on the other end.

"Hello?... Yes, I've been watching him… No, he doesn't know he's being followed… What do you wish for me to do?... Very well, I'll just keep watching him till you get everything ready… Yes, ma'am… Goodbye," they hung up, tossing the phone into the passenger seat of their blacked-out SUV. Starting up the vehicle, the engine roaring to life, they pulled off from the side of the curb and went on their way.

-Line Break-

**A/N: Thank you guys so much for reading the first chapter! I hope you enjoyed and are excited for more!**

**Reviews are very welcomed, especially if they are constructive criticism. Most people don't realize it but when authors receive good reviews it makes them feel really good and want to write even more! At least that's what it's like for me. **

**Please Fav, Follow, and Review! See you guys next chapter!**


	2. Chapter 2 New Job New Problems

**A/N: Hey Welcome back to another Chapter! Sorry, I haven't updated in a while, I've been helping my dad remodel our new house so I haven't had time to write much. Well to do anything really but work, sleep, repeat. Anyway, I want to address some of the reviews of the last chapter before we begin this one!**

**To **_**Kurama The Platinum Zoroark: **_**You'll just have to wait and see who Prof. William is. And as for deleting this fic. No. I'm going to stick with this one.**

**To **_**PyroFox117: **_**Almost every fanfiction has something cliche about it xD. And lastly, as much as I do enjoy the cliche bullies beating up the main character. This story is not going to be like that.**

**Okay now that, that is out of the way! On to the story! Shoo! Scat! Scram! Read! Why are you still here!? The story is down below you fool!**

Chapter 2

New Job New Problems

* * *

"This is not what I expected," I muttered to myself, standing outside in the small parking lot of _Freddy Fazbear's Pizza. _The building looked as if it was one health inspection away from being condemned. The once lustrous-red brick walls were now a brown, dirty, cracked, ugly mess. A few windows were boarded up, cracked, or missing completely. The large billboard sign above the entrance, that had the faces of their 'famous' animatronics on it, was peeling away and looked as if it was about to fall. Neon lights below the sign and right above the double glass doors spelled, "Freddy Fazbear's Pizza" in, fancy pink cursive. A few of the letters were flickering and sputtering, sparks flying out of loose wires, and some of the letters not even illuminated. The remaining lit lettering spelling out: "F-e-d-y -a-z-e-r-s -i-z-a."

Before I left my apartment I changed into a clean black shirt, with a red hoodie and blue jeans, my sneakers staying the same red and black torn up pieces of rubber and fabric that they were. On my way over here I stopped by the post office and sent my application letter to _Ralf's Robotic WonderWorld of Technology_ off back to wherever they are located in West Virginia.

As I made my way up to the extremely dirty, and finger smudged glass doors, I noticed tons of trash everywhere consisting of, but not limited to Cigarette butts, beer and soda cans, plastic bags, and what looked to be condoms as well. This place was just slightly better than most of the city of WaterField, a small town 'city' located somewhere far north in Maine. WaterField was an absolute shit hole for everyone except the rich and prosperous. If you had the money you could easily pay off the authorities to an extent, buy your way into any college, *cough* Eric *cough*, and do almost anything you want.

Pushing open the double glass doors I was greeted with the typical electronic ding, except the speaker had worn away and corroded so badly the once cheerful ding was replaced with a high pitched crackling sound. The sound of screaming, laughing, and crying children also permeated the building. The smell of pizza laced the air and I instantly started to drool at the thought of being able to eat freshly cooked pizza, hell freshly cooked anything would be welcomed. Quickly regaining myself I wiped the drool from the corner of my mouth with my sleeve and walked up to the front counter. A young woman with outrageously pink and purple waist-length hair, dressed in a dull red shirt with golden letters printed on it reading: "Fazbear Employee" with a nametag pinned to her left shoulder containing the name "Jessica" printed on the cheap plastic. She was sitting on a tall stool behind the counter, her arm propped up on the counter at the elbow and her head in her hand as she read a magazine.

As I reached the counter she spoke, "Hello, and welcome to Freddy Fazbear's Pizza. A magical place for kids and grown-ups alike, where fantasy and fun come to life," drawled Jessica, her gaze never leaving the magazine she was reading.

"Ahh… Hi, I'm here about the job advertisement in the newspaper," I said tentatively, stepping up to the counter. I could already tell this lady was not in a good mood and I did not want to make her day worse by being an asshole.

Jessica finally looked up from her magazine and raised an eyebrow, looking me up and down, which made me feel really uncomfortable. Her expression seemed to be one of curiosity, like why-would-anyone-want-to-work-here curiosity.

She jabbed a thumb over her shoulder, pointing at a hallway, and said: "Down the hall, first door on your left."

"Thanks," I replied, making my way towards the hall entrance.

Before I headed for the hallway to find the manager's office I took a look around, taking in the rest of the pizzeria. Black and white cracked, and dirty checkered linoleum floor, disgusting grey walls with a single checkered pattern stripe running horizontally all around the room, and a large wooden show stage with red curtains. On the stage were 3 animatronics that took the shape of anthropomorphic animals. The first of which is a large purple bunny with a rose-red bowtie, holding a V-shaped red and white electric guitar. Standing on the bunny's left in the middle was a large brown bear, holding a microphone, and wearing a black top hat and bow tie. The last animatronic was a large yellow… duck? No, I think it's a chicken. Hard to tell. Anyway, this animatronic wore nothing but a white bib with a confetti pattern print on it, and large yellow letters saying "Let's Eat!" outlined in purple.

The sight of the animatronics was not what I was expecting. Where I expected to see: large, box-shaped, jerky, hardly functioning, ugly, cheap animatronics. I saw: large, human-shaped, slightly jerky, hardly functioning, and for lack of a better word, cute, animatronics. Albeit they were all pretty dirty and disgusting looking even from here.

"Least they could do is give the poor things a bath," I mumbled to myself as I watched the animatronics perform.

The bunny was making jerky up and down motions on her guitar, which was playing pre-recorded chords. The bear was spouting more pre-recorded lyrics into her microphone. And the duck… chicken… whatever was trying to be a backup singer but seemed to be drowned out by the bear and bunny.

For some reason, I felt saddened at the fact that almost, if not all, of the children, were not even paying attention to them. Sure, they are just animatronics, they're not alive. But still, it's sad to see them being ignored like that. Tearing my gaze from the animatronics, I turned and headed down the hall behind me to find the manager's office.

Walking down the empty hallway, my feet slapping against the linoleum and echoing off the walls, I noticed most of the walls are covered in child-like drawings of the animatronics. One drawing had a figure that seemed to be the bear animatronic, judging by the black blobby top hat and bow tie it wore. The strangest thing about it though was that whatever kid drew this, they had obviously gotten the color brown mixed up with gold. Eh, kids are kids, let them have fun I guess.

Finding the first door on the left, a sign was hanging in the middle reading "Manager's Office." I knocked on the door and heard a cheery voice respond and tell me to come in. I pushed the door open and stepped inside a tiny office. In the middle of the room was a short and slightly pudgy man, dressed in a tacky brown suit and red tie, sitting behind a small oak desk in a crusty, and worn out black leather swivel chair.

"Hello there young man, what can I do for you?" asked the man, clasping his hands together and leaning forward so his elbows rested on the desk. He nodded for me to take a seat in the small wooden chair in front of the desk. I obliged and took the seat.

"Hello, my name is Zee Phillips and I'm here about the job opening I saw in the paper. Is it still available?" I asked politely. With this being my first real job interview I was feeling really nervous, and as usual, when I get nervous my silly little tick starts to set in. I start cracking my fingers by pulling them inwards towards the palm of my hand using my thumb, even if they didn't crack I would keep doing it, going over each finger again and again, until I either calmed down or got out of the situation that was making me nervous and anxious.

On hearing my question the man's smile turned into a beaming grin. "Yes, it is still open! The position is night guard, you'll be working every night from 12 am to 6 am. You'll be paid $120 a week and everything is on the house for the day. How does that sound?" asked the manager rather rapidly, now leaning over his desk seeming very excited and relieved.

"Uh… That sounds good, I guess?" I respond by saying it more like a question. I leaned back in my chair away from the over-excited manager. I was not expecting him to be so eager. "I do have one request though."

The manager relaxed back into his swivel armchair, beaming brightly. "And that would be?" he asked, his smile never wavering.

"I want to keep these on at all times, it shouldn't affect how I work but it's for a personal reason," I stated, tapping the side of my blacked-out circular sunglasses.

"Not a problem! Not a problem!" exclaimed the manager. "All I need you to do is sign this and you've got the job!" He opened a drawer in his desk and pulled out a slip of paper, placing it down in front of me, along with a pen. Not once during all of this did his smile waver or shrink. It was kind of disturbing actually.

"What's this?" I questioned, scooting closer to the desk and looking down at the compact mess of black and white. I could hardly understand it, the writing was so small and in such fancy cursive, my head started to spin.

"Oh, nothing serious, just your employment contract. You know, the usual: I accept I'll work these hours, and that these are the duties I must uphold, blah blah blah. Nothing to worry about, just sign your name at the bottom and I'll get you sorted out with a uniform," explained the manager, his now creepy smile still plastered proudly across his face, and his hands clasped together. Seeming as excited as a kid at Christmas.

I hesitated at first due to not being able to even read the contract, but it's not like this is some kind of pact with the devil. So, shrugging off the weird feeling I had, I pressed the pen to the paper and signed, then slid the paper back over to the manager. He read it over for a second making sure I signed everything properly and then he looked up and held out his hand. "Welcome to the Fazbear Family Mr. Phillips!"

"Thank you, Mister…?"

"Charles! James Charles! Sorry for not introducing myself sooner, I was just very excited to finally have a nightguard."

I looked at his hand hesitantly. _Come on Zee! It's just a handshake! You can deal with that much physical contact... can't you? Yes! I can do this! _I clasped his hand in mine and shook it, a slight smile coming to my face. And of course, at that moment is when my stomach decided to betray me. My stomach rumbled loudly, and I felt the heat rising on my cheeks from embarrassment.

Mister Charles just laughed and shook his head. "Please Mr. Phillips, go get something to eat. Everything's on the house today."

Sighing in relief that he didn't take my body demanding sustenance as an insult, which I've found out some people seem to get insulted by for some reason, I thanked him again and left the cramped office. Once back out in the hallway I leaned against the wall and rubbed my temples. "Ugh… maybe I'm getting a weird headache or something," I muttered to myself.

Ever since I entered the pizzeria there has been this slight hum in the back of my head, but now at this point, it seems to have grown into an incessant buzzing within my skull. Shaking my head I started making my way back up the hallway. I stopped and looked at the wall to my right, noticing a blank rectangular patch among the wall plaster of children's drawings. Where the blank patch of gray was located among the colorful sheets of paper, I knew I had seen something in its place. Wasn't that where I passed that drawing of the bear animatronic, where some kid mixed up brown with gold? I shrugged, guessing I probably just missed it and headed out into the main party room.

Looking around I spotted the restrooms near the front doors and made a beeline for the men's room. Entering the restroom, the stench wasn't too bad but it was still awful nonetheless. After using one of the urinals, I washed my hands in the sink. After taking off my glasses I cupped my hands under the stream of water and splashed some water into my face, and looked back up into the mirror. What I saw made me jump out of my skin. There was a shadowy figure standing in the corner of the restroom. I swiped my glasses up off the counter and slammed them back on my face. Looking back up into the mirror, I saw the figure still there. Due to the shadows obscuring almost all their features I couldn't make out who they were, all I knew was whoever they were, they were tall, standing at somewhere around 6 feet.

I slowly turn towards the dark corner of the restroom, to come face to face with… a wall. I looked back into the mirror at the same spot where the figure was and there was nobody there. "Okay, nothing unusual, I'm just hallucinating. Probably because I haven't eaten in a long time," I reassured myself. I smiled at myself in the mirror and let out a small chuckle. Seriously? I'm getting worked up over a couple of hallucinations? I saw the same thing back at the University. I've had a few hallucinations from malnutrition before, nothing to get worked up about. Soon I'll be able to get something to eat.

* * *

Sitting at a booth I read over the menu, and to my great surprise, I found they served much more than just pizza. I looked down the long list of fancy-sounding Italian food, there was so much I was overwhelmed and settled to order the _Meat Explosion _Pizza, which consisted of Pepperoni, bacon, ham, sausage, salami, and chicken.

"Welcome to Fazbear's Pizza! May I take your order?" asked a very bubbly and excited voice. I looked up from the menu to lay eyes on a young woman who looked to be 18 or 19. Her raven-black hair fell down to the middle of her back, her figure was slim and athletic like she went on a jog every morning, and she had pretty green eyes. On her body, she wore a Fazbear Uniform, consisting of Black knee-length shorts, and a dull red shirt with golden letters on it spelling out "Fazbear Employee." And upon seeing this person in front of me my jaw dropped.

"Lucy?" I asked in confusion. The girl standing in front of me is the one and only, Lucy Marigold. She was a fellow student at my university and my best friend! Well… my only friend actually. Due to school and her saying she got a job, which I had no idea was here, we haven't had much time to hang out.

"Zee? What are you doing here?" she asked bewildered, taking the liberty to sit down in my booth across from me.

"You first! Why are you here?" I exclaimed, half confused as to why she was here of all places, and the other half, excited that I got to see my best friend.

She just rolled her eyes and leaned across the table flicking me on the forehead before settling back down. "Duh, I work here you dunce," she said in a mock-annoyed tone. She tugged at the collar of her work shirt to drive home the fact she's an employee. "Now it's your turn, what are you doing here, Agent Z?"

Ah yes, Agent Z, a nickname she gave me back when we used to go to high school together. She called me that because of the dark sunglasses I wear all the time and the first letter of my somewhat strange name. She said I look like some kind of secret agent, and so the name stuck and it's what she calls me on occasions.

I smirked at her and leaned across the table and returned what she did to me, and flicked her on her forehead before settling back down to my seat. "Duh, I work here you dunce," I said in the same mock-annoyed tone she used.

"What do you mean you work here?" she asked inquisitively.

"I just got done signing a contract for the night guard position here," I replied, folding my arms and smirking at her. "And as a bonus, I get all the food on the house for the day! And seeing as you are currently working here and are probably still on the clock, I would like to order a large _Meat Explosion _pizza and a large root-beer, thank you very much!"

She scribbled everything down in her notepad and stood up. "Well, I'll get right on that, Monsieur Phillips," she smiled and gave me a mock-bow before turning and walking to a pair of double swinging doors on the far left of the main room.

I smiled to myself, feeling happy for the first time in a long while. I've got a job, I'm pretty certain I'll pass my school test of building my own robot, I just got to spend some time with my best friend, I'll be able to get food, and pay Mr. Robinson back. Yeah… Things seem to be getting better. Sure this morning was a fiasco, and I still need to figure out how the hell Eric knew my secret. But still, I'll deal with that when the time comes. Right now I just feel rather happy, asides the incessant buzzing that sounds like static in my head. God, I think I might be getting sick.

Sitting here and waiting for my food to arrive, I watched the animatronics on stage to pass the time. They were playing another cheesy song, something about pizza and friendship. It was nothing but pre-recorded lyrics and tunes that they had to repeat over and over and over, for years. And like before, not one single child was paying them any attention, they were either running around playing with their friends, eating, or playing on the old arcade machines in the corner.

Looking around the pizzeria I gained a sense of deja vu and nostalgia. _Have I ever been here before? _I thought, looking for something that seemed familiar. But sadly nothing seemed to jump out and register any forgotten memories. _Maybe I came here before the accident? It makes sense, seeing as I lost about 10 years of memories. _7 years ago I had some kind of accident (at least that's what the doctors said) and I was diagnosed with amnesia. I couldn't remember anything from before waking up in the hospital. Now that I think about it, no one ever told me what kind of accident I was in, and I never really bothered to find out, I was only 10… I think.

"You're still doing that, huh?" asked a slightly saddened Lucy, she placed a large red and white striped cup with a blue straw down on my right, and then placed a large steaming hot pizza in the middle of the table.

I looked at her eyes and followed her gaze to my right hand that I had resting on the table, my pointer finger was being pulled inwards towards my palm by my thumb. My tick had subconsciously started up. I pulled my finger downwards quickly, the sound that followed was a sharp and deep crack that caused Lucy to flinch.

"Yeah, I guess I am," I responded, reaching for a slice of pizza.

"I thought you told me you were over it, Zee," frowned Lucy.

"I was, just… something about this place makes me really nervous. I don't know what it is, but it feels so familiar yet foreboding at the same time."

She sighed and placed a hand on my head and ruffled my hair a bit. "Just make sure you take care of yourself Lil bro, you don't look too good," she said, and then walked off to continue her job.

'Lil bro' it's been so long since she called me that. In truth, Lucy was like an older sister to me, she has been since high school, always looking out for my well being and trying to keep other kids off my back. But then school, and her parents, drove us apart till we finally met back up in college, only to be driven apart once again by school and of course, her parents. Maybe we can hang out sometime soon, I'd like that, and I'm pretty sure she would be ecstatic about it.

Holding up the slice of pizza I snagged, I took a large bit and instantly melted into bliss. Either it's because I haven't eaten in several weeks, or the pizza is really just that good, I didn't care, all I knew was that this was the best-tasting pizza I had ever eaten. The warm gooey cheese and the delicious combinations of meats was pure heaven for my tastebuds. Finishing off that slice I took a sip from my drink and then eyed the rest of the pizza. I pounced on it like a starving wolf.

* * *

Judging by the position of the sun I would say it's probably around 4:00 or 5:00 pm. After finishing my pizza Mr. Charles popped by and informed me that he did not have any more night guard uniforms in stock, so I would just have to wear normal clothes till he gets some in, not that I'm complaining. After that, he told me to be back here by 10:00 pm so he can give me the rundown of what to do. And that leads me here, I'm currently walking back to my apartment to get some rest before my first shift starts.

Suddenly I felt a large hand cover my mouth muffling my yelp of surprise, and before I knew what was happening I was being dragged into an alleyway. I could smell the heavy layer of alcohol that was coming from the person who just grabbed me. _Oh god! I'm going to die here, aren't I? _I mentally yelled at myself. And just as suddenly as I was grabbed I was being thrown against the alley's disgusting brick wall. I struggled to my feet and turned around to face my attacker, and then I felt confusion rush over me, followed by fear, only to be replaced with anger.

"Eric? What the hell are you doing?! Haven't you done enough already!" I yelled at him. Standing in front of me was a disgruntled and obviously drunk, Eric Venhieser.

"It's your fault! It's all your fault you son of a bitch!" screamed Eric, as he slammed his fist into my stomach and knocked the wind out of me, causing my still sore stomach and ribs from this morning to flare up with newfound pain.

"W-What a-are you talking about?!" I wheezed, trying my utmost hardest to regain the flow of oxygen to my lungs. _What have I ever done to him? I never even knew him till I arrived at WaterField University!_ I thought as he punched me again, sending me to the ground. My glasses flying off my face and, of course, once again shattering on the ground.

"I-It's your f-fault Phillips! *Hiccup* You k-killed her! She's dead because of y-y-you! *Hiccup* YOU MURDERING BASTARD!" slurred Eric, he brought his foot back and swung it at my ribcage. Thankfully I was already curled up trying to protect myself and so his kick bounced off my arms.

"I don't even know what you're talking about! I've never killed anyone!" I yelled back at him. _Albeit, if the police reports are correct then… No! It's impossible! I've never hurt anyone in my life! _I thought as Eric continued his assault on my body.

It seemed Eric couldn't hear me, and even if he could he didn't show any signs of caring. What took me by surprise however was that Eric's kicks were becoming slow and weak, and when I looked up at him, tears were streaming down his face.

"I-It's… Y-Your fault… *Hiccup* Y-You… K-Killed my sister, P-Phillips!" sobbed Eric. He fell to his knees letting go of the beer bottle he held and let it roll away from his grasp, the bottle spilling its remaining contents across the mucky, trash-filled alley floor.

"W-What?" I asked, pushing myself up off the ground to sit up and lean against the wall. "What are you talking about?"

He looked up at me with tear-filled eyes that contained utter rage and hatred. "You! You are the reason my little sister is dead! You killed her! YOU KILLED HER YOU SON OF A BITCH!" he screamed, and then lunged at me, his hands outstretched. He found his target and gripped his meaty fingers around my neck and started to squeeze.

I clawed at his hands trying to pry them from my throat so I could breathe. "P-Please… S-S-Stop!" I wheezed, trying my best to get him off me. I brought my right hand down and started to scan the ground for something I could use. My hand brushed against something cylindrical and cold, my hand snapped out, grabbed it and smashed whatever it was against the side of Eric's head. Whatever it was that I used seemed to work because Eric was laying on his side unconscious, a slight trickle of blood falling from the side of his head down to his chin. Little bits of brown something, it looked like glass, glinted in the afternoon sun. I looked over at my right hand and at what I held in it. I was gripping the neck of the beer bottle Eric had let go of, half the bottle had shattered on impact with his skull.

I looked at the bottle in my hand then back to Eric. My hands started to shake, and then my entire body followed suit. Images started to flash into my head, an image of red walls flashed across my vision and I started to shake even more. And then I screamed, I screamed because instead of seeing a broken bottle in my hand I saw a blood-covered knife, I could hear whispering inside my head and then that horrible buzzing static sound! It's going to drive me crazy! I held the knife out an arm's length away as I shook violently, but then I blinked and the knife morphed back into a broken bottle. I tossed it against the opposite alley wall where the rest of it shattered on impact. I scrambled to my feet, my hand pressed against my now injured neck.

Scrambling to the other side of the alley I threw up, emptying my stomach of all the food I had eaten earlier. I stumbled to the alley entrance, taking a quick glance back at the still-breathing body of Eric sprawled out on the ground. After everything Eric had done to me, I still harbored no ill will towards him. I returned my gaze forward and started to stumble and trip my way back towards my apartment. Pushing through the pain that riddled my body, and trying to hold back the tears that were forming in the corners of my eyes.

* * *

"Help! Please, somebody, help me!" I cried, banging against the cold metal door. "I don't want to die!"

"Where do you think you're going?" whispered a cold deadly voice into my ear. Then blinding pain erupted through my body, starting from my lower back. I looked down and saw the glint of metal amongst the red. A blood-covered blade of a knife sticking out of my stomach. And just as fast as it had appeared it was withdrawn and sent new waves of pain stampeding throughout my body.

"AAAHHH!" I shot up from my sleep screaming my head off as phantom pain riddled my body. I could feel a faint painful tingling coming from my stomach and lower back, at first it was blinding pain, but it very quickly faded away to nothingness. I was drenched in sweat and shaking violently. Looking over to my clock I read the time. It was 9:25 pm, better get ready for work.

Throwing my sheets off my body I slid out of bed and made my way into the bathroom, where I took a quick shower to freshen myself up and get ready for the night. After showering I started brushing my teeth. Spitting out the toothpaste and rinsing my mouth out I looked up at myself in the mirror. I cringed at the sight of my neck. My neck was a cringe-worthy shade of black and purple. I touched it slightly and felt a twinge of pain run through my neck, no wonder it was rather painful to shower. I left the bathroom and headed back into my room to get changed. I threw on a simple dark-green button up long sleeve shirt, my white hoodie, my only pair of black jeans, and of course, my red and black tennis shoes, which were the only pair of shoes I owned. And to top off my look, I put on the only winter wear that I owned, a white scarf, to hide the large bruise that covered my neck, and of course a new pair of blacked-out circular sunglasses.

Looking at myself in the mirror I now understood why Lucy gave me the nickname 'Agent Z.' I did kind of look like some kind of secret agent going undercover. I smiled, turned on my heel and left heading for my front door. Opening it up to leave I came face to face with Mr. Robinson.

"Mr. Robinson?" I choked out through my sore throat, slightly shocked the old man was up at this time, he was usually asleep by now.

"Mr. Phillips, are you alright? I heard screaming," asked Mr. Robinson, worry plastering his kind old face.

"Don't worry sir. It was nothing, just a… really bad nightmare is all," I reassured him in my newfound raspy voice. _Yeah, a nightmare I've had every night for the past 7 years! _I thought to myself.

"Hmm… If you say so," said the old man, not believing a word I said. He's a wise old man, he picks up on when something is wrong. "What's with the attire? And your voice? Are you sick?"

"Oh, well I got a job today so I'll be able to pay you for this month and last month's rent soon!" I exclaim excitedly, "And as for this," I say tugging slightly on the scarf, "It's a bit chilly out is all, it's January after all." I hate lying to the old man, he's so nice to me and I try to repay him as much as possible, but I don't think he needs to know I almost got choked to death. "And no, no. I'm not sick, just a bit under the weather with a sore throat is all."

"Hmm… Well, make sure you take care of that throat of yours and drink plenty of liquids. So where are you working now lad?" smiled Mr. Robinson.

"Nowhere special, just someplace called "Freddy Fazbear's Pizza" is all," I replied, "Small Pizzeria with a few animatronics, you can probably guess why I decided to work there," I chuckled a bit at the inside joke I shared with my landlord. He knows all about how much I love robots.

Mr. Robinson's smile got a little bit bigger after hearing the news and he said, "Really? Freddy's? I haven't been there in a long while. And yes I can see why you decided to work there," Mr. Robinson let out a small chuckle. "What position did you obtain lad?"

"Oh, um, night guard. It doesn't sound too hard honestly. I doubt anyone would want to rob that place."

Mr. Robinson's smile grew into a smirk and he replied with, " Yes, I'm sure it'll be easy. And I bet those animatronics will provide some sort of entertainment," he said all of this as if he knew something I didn't. "Well, you better get going now, you don't want to be late on your first night."

"Oh, right! I should get going. I'm sorry I haven't been able to fix anything around the building lately if there is anything you need me to fix or clean please make a list and slip it into my mail slot and I'll take care of it tomorrow," I said, stepping out of my doorway and into the hall, closing my apartment door behind me.

"Will do, Mr. Phillips. Have a goodnight," And with that, he turned and hobbled back towards his room.

* * *

Pushing the smudged glass doors open, a crackling chime rang throughout the building, alerting anyone else that was left inside the pizzeria to my presence. I walked into the main room to find a few employees left sweeping and rubbing down the tables. The person sweeping the floor was none other than my best friend and older-sister-figure, Lucy. While the other person who was cleaning the tables was a mid-sized man with brown hair, brown eyes, and wearing a white apron stained with flecks of dough and pizza sauce. As Well as a chef's hat, the top being comically slumped to one side.

Lucy waved to me enthusiastically and after giving a small wave back she resumed her work.

"Ah! Mr. Phillips! You're right on time, if not a few minutes late but those are small details that we don't need to dwell on," stated Mr. Charles rather rapidly as he entered the room from the hallway.

"Sorry Sir, I got held up by my landlord before I left," I explained, turning to face him.

"Like I said, Mr. Phillips, we don't need to dwell on a few minutes of lateness. Now! Let's get you acquainted with your office and I'll show you the ropes!"

"Sounds good boss."

"Please Mr. Phillips, Boss is too formal for me. Mr. Charles or even James will do just fine! Now follow me," he smiled and turned leading me down the hallway he just came from. But as we passed that empty rectangular spot on the wall where I knew a drawing had been, I stopped in my tracks.

"Mr. Charles?" I asked, still keeping my gaze on the small patch of gray wall as if just staring at it would make the drawing from earlier reappear.

"Hm? What is it Mr. Phillips?" replied the manager, stopping and turning to see what it was I needed.

"Wasn't there a picture here before? I could have sworn I saw one when I came here the first time," I explained, voicing my confusion.

He looked at me with a mix of shock and curiosity. "There hasn't been a picture there for years Mr. Phillips. It fell down and someone threw it away and no one bothered to cover up that small patch. Are you feeling well?" said Mr. Charles before voicing his concern over my health.

"Y-Yeah… I guess my mind was just playing tricks on me earlier," I said rubbing the back of my head. That goddamn buzzing was back and if it didn't stop soon it would drive me insane.

"Very well, let's continue on," said Mr. Charles, resuming his walk towards the back of the pizzeria.

Leading me just past his office we came to another small office, this one much more strange than any I've ever seen. There was an ugly red carpet laid out on the floor, with a black leather swivel chair sitting behind a wooden desk that was bolted to the wall. A few decade old monitors sat on the desk with a single rusty desk fan sitting on the far right side blowing a cool breeze throughout the office. But that wasn't what made it strange, no. What made the office strange were the 2 bulletproof glass windows on either side showing both hallways on the left and the right, and the old industrial level steel doorways that allowed entrance from both the left and right halls.

"Umm… What's with the heavy-duty equipment?" I asked, entering the office and looking around. The only modern thing I could find in the office was the single black tablet that lay on the desk and a couple of buttons on the wall.

"Oh, it's nothing! Just protection for you in case anyone breaks in with a weapon. We had that happen once a long time ago… The person sued and we nearly got shut down because of it," explained the manager, dabbing at his forehead with a white handkerchief.

"Uh-huh, well seems a little over the top for a kids pizza restaurant," I said, not entirely believing what he said.

"Anyways! This is your office for the foreseeable future, and that tablet there gives you access to the cameras throughout the entire building. All you gotta do is sit back, check the cameras, make sure no one gets in and relax! Easy peasy!" grinned Mr. Charles, "I'll let you get to it then, your shift starts in about an hour so I'll let you get acquainted with everything. Oh and there's a message on the phone to help you through your first night. I have to go now so I'll see you in the morning… hopefully," he said before trailing off and muttering something at the end that I couldn't quite hear.

And with that, he turned and left me standing there with many questions and a lot of confusion. _Phone? What phone? What is he talking about? _I thought to myself as I pulled out the chair and sat down. The desk was piled high with trash and old newspapers. Clearing it off and dumping it all into the small trash bin under the desk I saw what he was talking about. Hidden underneath all the junk was an old black corded phone, with a single red light blinking at the top alerting me that there was a new message.

Sitting down in the surprisingly comfortable leather chair and scooting myself closer to the desk, I scanned the old phone keypad for the play message button. Finding it at the top right I pressed it, relaxing my sore body into the cushioning leather of the office chair I was sat in.

"Hello? Hello, hello? Uh… Right! Welcome to your first night at Freddy Fazbear's Pizza," started a rather annoying and nervous sounding voice from the telephone. "Uh… So you're the nightguard, right? I mean if you're listening to this you've got to be. Unless you're not… t-then I'm gonna have to ask you to leave the building, you're not supposed to be here. B-But if you are the nightguard, well then um… welcome… again. R-Right, your job is rather simple really! You see that tablet in front of you?"

I picked up the tablet as the guy on the phone spoke, wanting to make sure I got everything down to the letter. I've always been like that, trying to make sure I get everything done right on the first try.

"Y-You'll probably notice that the tablet is really the only functioning piece of equipment in there… haha… Uh… Anyways, turn it on and a camera feed should pop up displaying the animatronics on stage."

Doing as he instructed I found the power button and booted up the tablet, and as he said a live camera feed of the animatronics on stage blinked into existence. _They look kind of creepy in the dark. _I thought as I continued to listen to the pre-recorded message.

"Use these cameras to take a look throughout the building, uh… the kitchen camera was supposed to be fixed but I don't think anyone got around to it… d-don't worry though, there is still audio so you can still hear anything that happens in there! Umm… So yeah, that's basically it! Just sit back, relax and make sure no one breaks in! If someone does happen to get into the building, there is a provided security taser strapped to the underside of the desk."

Bending over and looking under the desk there sure was a small little black box strapped to the underside of the desk, I grabbed it and pulled it off of its velcro strapping, and sat it next to me on the desk so I could reach it better just in case.

"Right, um… I just wanted to let you know that they turn off the power at night to save a few extra bucks, ya know? But don't worry! There's a backup generator, so you're all set on power! Except the generator is kind of old… and doesn't really last all night. So you only got a limited amount of power to use."

_Well, that's fine, it's not like I need to turn on any lights or anything. I should be fine if I just use the tablet to keep an eye on things. _I thought, resting my elbow on the desk and placing my head in my hand as I listened to the recording.

"Now you're probably thinking that you'll be fine, right? It's not like you need to use anything but the tablet correct? Well… About that… You see, the animatronic characters tend to wander a bit at night…"

"Excuse me, what?" I asked sitting up and staring at the phone.

"We think this is due to a glitch in their programming, having not been built with a proper 'night mode'. So when it's all quiet and no people are around, they… Well, go looking for the people. Which just so happens to be you in your office! Now, this wouldn't be too bad if that was it, but sadly these things are rather old and haven't had any maintenance in years. Uh… So here's the bad news, d-due to some malfunction and possibly corrupted software, the animatronics will more than likely see you as a naked endoskeleton without its suit on, which here at Freddy's is against the rules. I-In any case if they do get to you, they'll most likely try to… forcefully stuff you inside a Freddy Fazbear suit. Now, this wouldn't be so bad if the suits themselves weren't filled with crossbeams, wires, springs, and other mechanical oddities that could cause injury… or death…" continued the phone guy, trying to sound less nervous then he was.

"What the fuck!" I exclaimed loudly, hurting my already injured throat more. "There is no way all of this is all because of some glitchy corrupted software! Why don't they just turn off the damn things if this is what happens?!"

At this point I was standing up, my hands clenched into fists on the desk, my eyes staring daggers at the phone as if I could somehow transfer the fear and rage that was boiling inside me, to the guy who left the message.

"But hey! Lucky I'm here to help you get through your first night!" said the annoying phone guy. "If you look to your left and right, you'll find two buttons next to each door."

Glancing to the right I did indeed see two buttons on the wall next to the strange industrial style metal doorway. There was a red button labeled "door" and underneath that, a white button labeled "light", the left doorway mirroring the right.

"If you press the big red button it should close the door and keep the animatronics out of your office and away from you! The white button allows you to turn on the hall light to check the blind spots that the cameras can't pick up. So if you can't find any of the animatronics on the cameras make sure to check the hall with the lights."

Pressing the red buttoned marked "door" to test out if what he said was true, instantly the sound of hydraulics pumping accompanied the loud clang as a large, thick industrial-grade metal door slammed down and blocked access from the hall to my office.

"Wow… that's impressive I'll give them that," I said to myself, gawking at the rather over the top door. I re-opened the door and went back to listening to the recorded message that was there to help me survive the night with murderous animatronics.

"The doors and lights drain a lot of power, so only use them when absolutely necessary. Uh… That's about it! So umm… Good luck! Make sure to check those cameras, don't run out of power, and whatever you do! Do **NOT** leave your office! Alrighty then, I hope to see you tomorrow night. Good luck!" And with the last line of the message coming to an end, the guy on the phone hung up with a click and the flashing red light at the top of the phone blinked off.

"What the hell have I gotten myself into!" I exclaimed, running my hands through my hair and gripping it tightly in my fist. What made this whole situation worse was the fact that the static-like buzzing in my head had only grown in intensity, enwrapping my skull in a stinging sensation.

"I should have known better. No wonder Mr. Charles was so eager to get a new night guard," I mumbled to myself, sitting back down in the swivel chair and picking up the tablet. "At least these guys aren't moving," I said looking at the main stage camera.

Taking a deep breath, which shot stinging pain through my bruised throat, I started flipping through the other cameras to better my knowledge of the building's layout. The power meter in the top left of the screen showed I had 78% power left, and the digital clock in the top right part of the screen read 2:45 am. At least I had enough power to last the night.

Switching back to the main stage screen my heart stopped and my eyes widened. The bunny was gone, I didn't know their names so I just referred to them as their respective animal.

"No! No, no, no, no! This is not happening! There is no way in hell this is happening!" I said, gritting my teeth and frantically flipping through the cameras. Pressing on the camera that was right outside my door and feeding me a live feed of the west hallway, I saw it. The bunny was standing still right in the hall, the light above it flickering, slightly obscuring half its body in shadows. My stomach dropped into my feet and I could feel the adrenaline pumping through my veins. In all honesty, it wasn't that scary since you couldn't see even half the animatronic, but what did make this terrifying, was the 2 marble-sized white dots emanating from where the face should be if it weren't for the shadows obscuring its head. Both dots seemed to be fixated at the camera as if they were looking through the camera at me.

I was too scared to switch the camera away, fearing that if I took my eyes off the animatronic it would disappear instantly and re-appear right in front of me. Thankfully I didn't have to take my eyes off it, instead, it took my eyes off it for me. The screen broke into a mass of black and white static, white noise filling the small office.

"Gahh!" I yelped, falling out of my chair, the tablet flying into the air and then landing back in my lap. My breath quickened, my heart pounded, and sweat poured down my face, not from the office being too hot, but from sheer terror. I grabbed the tablet again as I sat on the floor, too concentrated on finding that damn bunny to think about getting up. I looked back at the screen only to find nothing there but the west hall being illuminated by a flickering white ceiling light. Quickly I flipped through the other cameras searching the building for the killer robot. Thankfully as I was switching through cameras I switched back to the main stage and felt a little bit of relief when I discovered none of the other animatronics had moved.

Once I checked all the cameras, I felt confused. "Where are you?" I muttered, starting to check the cameras again. _The white button allows you to turn on the hall light to check the blind spots that the cameras can't pick up_. The instructions the phone guy gave me echoed in my head, and my body froze. I slowly turned my head and looked at the door on my left. Slowly and cautiously, as if trying not to disturb a wild animal, I stood up and crept to the doorway. I reached my shaking hand out, my fingers millimeters away from pressing the button to turn on the light in the hall. Slowly, as if some invisible force was forcing my hand forward, I pressed the button.

The hall became illuminated in dim white light, and standing just outside the window, looking in with those creepy white eyes surrounded by a void of black. Was the bunny. We just stared at each other for what felt like an eternity, the rabbits face somehow showed an expression of both disgust, hate, and curiosity. Then it lurched forward, the sound of grating gears, and the whirr of a motor being accompanied by the thunking sound of hydraulics. Instantly, as if someone else was controlling my body, I pounded my fist against the door button, the heavy-duty slab of metal instantly slamming down between me and certain death.

I stood there staring at the door, my breathing fast and erratic, my hands clenched into fists so tight my nails sliced into my skin and caused my palms to start to bleed. Then came a resounding clang which more than likely meant the animatronic either ran into the door or hit it trying to break it down. At the sound I jumped backward, tripping over the ugly red carpet and falling back into my chair. Slowly I reached out and pressed the light button again. The purple face of the bunny popped into view as it stared into the office at me. This time I left the light on and scooted closer to the window. I looked at the animatronic, this being the first time I saw a real animatronic up close. For a moment, just this one singular blissful moment, I felt excited and full of wonder. I studied the animatronic, looking at the visible joints around its elbows, hips, ankles, shoulders, and neck. The fur the animatronic wore, although extremely grimy and filthy, looked real. But then I noticed something that I hadn't noticed before. The two lumps on the animatronics chest. I raised an eyebrow as I looked the animatronic over once more, and to my surprise, it did seem to be female. Its waist was slim and curved to suit a more feminine design, it had the two mid-sized breasts, the neck was slimmer than I thought when I saw her on stage, and the head was smaller and more feminine than I had first assumed. How I hadn't noticed this earlier I had no idea, maybe I need glasses.

All in all, despite her desperately needing a wash she looked rather… well, cute. "Wow… Now that I can see you better, you look less scary and more cute," I said, looking at the animatronic bunny right in those empty glowing white pupils. After saying that the bunny pulled back from the window slightly, its expression of disgust and hatred turning to shock. It seemed to be… flustered? Then before I knew what was happening she was gone, having run down the hall much quicker than I thought an animatronic should be able to move.

"Uhh… What just happened?" I asked myself, sitting there dumbfounded. I opened the door back up to conserve power and shut off the light. Pushing myself back over to the desk I picked up the tablet once again and switched to the camera viewing the main stage. The bunny was back in her place next to the other two animatronics who still hadn't moved at all. After my strange little 'conversation' with the bunny, I felt a lot calmer, at least as calm as you can be with 3 killer robots wanting to stuff you inside an animal suit. I looked over the other animatronics, the bear and duck, I mean chicken. They were all designed similarly to the bunny. All 3 of them had the slender curvy frames of females, the relatively averaged sized 'assets', except for the chicken whose breasts were a bit larger than the others, and the feminine shaped craniums. If it weren't for the awful state their fur or feathers in the chickens' case were in, and if they would just be washed up and given some maintenance to fix some problems like the loose wires sticking out from around their joints, and the fucking glitch in their system that caused them to kill anyone here after hours, they would look rather beautiful. At least that's my opinion.

Sitting back in my chair I looked at the time, it was 4:34 am. "Just 1 and a half hours left and I'm out of this restaurant from hell," I said aloud, flicking through the cameras once again.

* * *

It's been about an hour now and the bunny has moved again, now she's standing in the supplies closet staring up into the camera with those creepy white eyes. Switching over to the kitchen camera, which was as the phone guy said, broken asides from audio, I heard the clanging of metal come through the tablet speakers.

"What in the world?" I said, looking confused at the tablet. There was silence for a moment and I was about to write it off as my mind playing tricks on me when more clanging and then an ear-piercing static-filled shriek emanated from the tablet. I winced and nearly dropped the tablet. "Well looks like someone is in the kitchen, I wonder who," I switched over to the main stage and discovered the yellow chicken missing from the stage. "Well, that explains the who," I switched over to the supplies closet to find the bunny missing, flicking through the cameras I rediscovered her back in the main party room looking like her usual creepy yet cute self, staring into the camera as if she was staring into my soul. I switched back to the kitchen to still hear what sounded like the attempts to cook something ring out through the speakers.

I switched back to the main party room and found the bunny gone once again. Flicking through the cameras I started to panic as I couldn't find her. Once I had gone through all the cameras I looked at the time left till 6:00 am, just 10 more minutes till I go home! But then I glanced at my power bar and noticed it was at twenty-percent.

"What the hell! Twenty-percent? O-Okay that's fine, I'll make it! Nothing to worry about!" I said, trying to reassure myself. Then I remembered I had forgotten about the bunny, I launched myself at the left door slamming my hand against the door button. The large red button clicked and the heavy metal door slammed shut. Only seconds later did I hear a loud bang, and see the slab of metal tremble slightly. I pressed the light button and the bunny's face appeared looking irritated as if she just had a present taken away from her.

"Ha! Not tonight!" I said, adrenaline flowing through my veins yet my body still gripped in fear. I glanced at the tablet once more and the power meter had dropped to thirteen-percent and the clock read: 5:55 am. "5 more minutes and I'm out of here. I'm going to have a few choice words with Mr. Charles when this is all over!" I snarled, feeling absolute hate towards the man that I felt tricked me into this deadly situation.

I sat in my comfortable leather office chair, keeping both doors shut, and watching the minutes tick by, and the power drain little by little. Finally, I sighed in relief as the final minute flipped over and the time switched to 6:00 am. I had only one-percent power left when the time switched over, and I knew that I was lucky. As soon as the time changed I could hear a grandfather clock ringing out through the building, signaling the end of my shift, and the building's power getting restored as the backup generator shut off. The flow of electricity from the power grid revived the dead building, casting soft comforting white light throughout the structure.

Almost instantly I shot out of my chair, opened the doors, and rushed out into the main part room just in time to see Mr. Charles walking in the front door, replacing his keys back into his pocket. Thankfully all the animatronics were also back on stage.

"Ahh, Mr. Phillips! I'm glad to see you're alright!" beamed Mr. Charles as he walked up to me. "How was your first night on the job?"

The relief that had once washed over me when my shift ended was replaced with pure, uncontrollable rage as I glared at Mr. Charles. Albeit he had no idea I was glaring at him so intensely due to my glasses obscuring my eyes and keeping ninety-percent of my facial expressions hidden.

"How was it? How was it?!" I said, raising my voice each time I spoke. "You could have told me the damned things walked around during the night! Or perhaps the small, tiny, insignificant detail that they want to shove me inside a fucking animatronic suit that would crush me to death!" I started to half scream, as I stepped closer to the man before me.

This entire time Mr. Charles' smile did not waver, he did not step back, and he did not react in any way to show that he felt threatened or upset. He acted as if this was completely normal.

"Yes, I do apologize for the inconvenience of certain... problems, I was unfortunate enough to forget," he said calmly, his smile still big and bright as always.

"Forget? You forgot that you owned killer animatronics?" I asked, extremely peeved at his calmness of the situation.

"Of course not, because **I **don't own killer animatronics," he replied walking over to the stage and the animatronics. "Come let me introduce you to them!"

I followed him over to the stage albeit reluctantly. Once we stepped up on stage he gestured with his hand towards the purple bunny.

"This here is Bonnie, our greatest guitarist!" He said, then gestured to the other two. "That is Chica over on the end, our beautiful pizza-loving chicken. And this here is, of course, the star of the show, Freddy! Our famous singing bear that all the kids love!" He exclaimed, introducing them all like they were famous celebrities.

"Nice to finally put a name to my tormentors," I mumbled, looking each one over. Bonnie looked the same as last night, Freddy had about the same make-up as Bonnie, albeit a few inches taller than the others. Chica was the shortest of the 3, probably being around five-foot-nine or five-foot-ten, with her 'assets' being just a bit bigger than the other 2. Bonnie was around six feet tall, with her ears adding an extra foot to her already tall build.

"You know you should get them fixed and they'll probably bring in more people, and the next night guard won't have to worry about being stuffed into a Freddy Fazbear suit," I said, still looking at the animatronics. Even though they seemed to want to kill me, I still couldn't help but have childlike wonder and excitement being near them. They were just so amazing looking, that is they would be if they weren't so dirty and broken.

"Next nightguard? What do you mean?" Asked Mr. Charles, turning to face me, his face full of panic and concern.

"You really expect me to stay here another night after learning these things want to kill me due to some fucking hardware glitch?" I said, starting to raise my voice once again, annoyed that he would even consider my staying.

"What?! You can't leave! It's in your contract!"

"Oh really? The same contract that wasn't even legible? Which I'm pretty sure is illegal for someone to have their employees sign an illegible contract," I stated, not knowing if that was actually an illegal thing.

"You're the one who didn't read it!" He argued back, getting slightly angered.

"And you are the one who made it so I was unable to read it," I countered, watching his face fall. "I could just report you to the authorities and be done with this."

"I'll pay you double!" He exclaimed, beads of sweat dripping from his forehead. He really needed a night guard huh? "I have an inspection coming in a month or so and if I don't have all my employee positions filled they'll shut me down! And I promised an old friend that I wouldn't let this place go under no matter what."

_Double? That's more money than I see in a month._ I thought as I looked at the disheveled animatronics, wondering why anyone would stay here. Even though I just had one of these guys try to get me last night, I can't help but want to stay. It's not like I'm some kind of thrill-seeker, but this was my first time seeing real animatronics. Sure they weren't the best animatronics in the world like at, _Ralf's Robotic WonderWorld of Technology, _but they were the closest thing to my dream_. _"Triple, and one more request," I said looking at him.

"Deal, you can have anything you want!" He said, sounding relieved.

"I want you to keep the power on during the night so I can keep the doors shut!" I demanded, my mouth turning downwards in a slight frown, showing I was still very peeved at my recent discovery of murderous animatronic animals.

"Ahh..." sighed Mr. Charles, "Well... You see, I can't really do that. The company has been losing money a lot recently and almost all the sister locations have been shut down, so to save costs the CEO has made it so we shut the power off at night."

"Company? Sister locations? CEO?" I asked, taking a seat on the edge of the stage as the buzzing in the back of my head took a front-row seat.

"Mr. Phillips are you alright?" asked Mr. Charles, laying a hand on my shoulder.

"Y-Yeah... I'm fine, just a headache is all. Please continue."

"Very well, you at least deserve to know everything. It most likely isn't clear but Freddy's is a -or use to be- a large corporation of entertainment restaurants, mainly pizzerias, and diners. This is actually the only place with the animatronic mascots, for some reason the CEO only managed to get the 3 animatronics you see here." He said, waving a hand behind him at Bonnie, Chica, and Freddy. "We used to be huge! But then '87 came around and the business fell into dire and troublesome times. After that, people stopped coming and not just to here but in other states as well. Soon almost all sister locations had been shut down, and this is the only place that has remained open." Mr. Charles sighed.

"Listen, Zee." Said Mr. Charles, dropping all formalities. I could hear the desperation in his voice as he spoke. "I know you probably hate me right now, hell, I would too if I were in your shoes, but the thing is I promised my friend that I wouldn't let this place go down."

"Why? Why is this place so important to your friend?" I asked looking over to him, a single eyebrow raised above the rim of my glasses.

"Well, it isn't actually this place he cares about," He said looking over his shoulder at the idle animatronics. "It's these guys he cared so much about, but if this place goes down then they'll be sent off to be scrapped and I can't allow that."

"Then why don't clean them and get them fixed up?!" I asked, almost yelling as the irritation in my voice became prominent.

"We simply don't have the funds, the CEO refuses to dish out any more money to keep this place afloat and would rather have it shut down." He explained as I pondered on what to do.

"Okay... I'll stay. But only because I'm getting paid triple!" I said, glancing at the animatronics. Apparently, I did something to cause the manager to chuckle as he watched me looking at the animatronics. "What? What's so funny?"

"Oh, nothing. Just kind of strange... Your posture and the way you act. I would think you would rather be far away from these things after having them try to kill you last night. But you're a lot more relaxed around these guys more than anyone I've ever seen," He said, explaining why he found me amusing. "It's just like how my old friend acted."

I blushed from embarrassment, not because he thought me strange, but because what he said was true. "R-Right... I better get going, I don't want to be late for my classes."

I stood up and bid Mr. Charles farewell as he made his way down the hall and into his office. As I was about to exit the building I heard a creak from behind me. I turned to find the source of the noise, yet I didn't see anything. Until I looked up on stage at the animatronics. All 3 of them were looking at me. Bonnie, looked... embarrassed? Freddy seemed to be glaring daggers at me, emitting an aura of hatred. And Chica, who's eyes were darting between me and Freddy, looked like she was worried and ready to jump in to stop the large angry bear if she got out of hand.

Feeling bolder now that the sun was up, and that they couldn't do anything to me during the day, I waved to them and said, "See you tonight! Have a good day!" And walked out the building into the cool morning air. The sun warming my skin as I walked across the parking lot.

* * *

**A/N: Welp there it is! Chapter 2, after so many months of no updates I finally got back to writing! I'm sorry if my writing has gone down hill in quality, but it should be expected since I haven't written in months. But for now on I will try to keep writing and updating as soon as possible. Thank you to all who have followed and favorited this story, and many more thanks to those who have left a review! Reviews are always nice to get, they're like presents! Always exciting to know what people think of my story, whether it be good or bad. I'm not sure if I'm going to keep making chapters as long as this one or not, maybe, maybe not. It really depends on what you guys would like. Longer chapters or quicker updates with shorter chapters? You peeps decide and I'll make the final decision. Also some information on Zee's strange finger cracking quirk for when he's nervous and stuff. That is actually something I do in real life when I'm nervous or anxious or really just whenever. So I decided to add it in as a thing Zee has as well. Also anyone who has seen the anime Tokyo Ghouls or read the manga probably already guessed where I got it from. Yeah I got it from an anime called Tokyo Ghouls, my favorite anime. If you would like a better image on what Zee is doing when he cracks his knuckles like this look up "Tokyo Ghouls knuckle crack". Should give you the idea of what he's doing.**

**Follow, Fav, and Review! Now go! Shoo! Onto the next chapter! And if the next chapter isn't out yet, then on to another fanfiction with you! See you guys next time!**


	3. Chapter 3 Video Games and Monsters

**A/N:** **So hopefully the story has been fixed and all of you people can read it! Sorry I haven't posted in such a long time. Life has really gotten most of my time taken up. Just started my senior year in high school so I'm swamped with school work, and I've started streaming on twitch and trying to turn that into a career for myself. I'll try to upload more often school has started lessening up so I'll have more time!**

**Anyways, go enjoy Chapter 3! Go on! Shoo! Go read it! ...Why are you still reading this?! The story is down below you dunderheads!  
**

* * *

Chapter 3

Video Games and Monsters

* * *

As I opened my apartment door I was greeted by a single folded piece of paper on the floor below the mail slot, and an almost barren room devoid of any type of modern comforts. I took a deep breath, letting my nostrils become filled with the stagnant air of poverty. Exhaling, letting out a long sigh, I picked up the letter and unfolded it. Where I had expected it to be a list of things I could help fix or clean around the building from Mr. Robinson, it was, in fact, an invitation to his apartment. I just stared at the letter blankly, my tired mind trying to keep up with my eyes. Once my brain had finally processed what the letter said I turned and shut my door, not even taking a step into my apartment before I was called off to somewhere else.

As I made my way down the hall to the stairwell I noticed several other tenants with their doors open to the hall and any passers-by. Inside one room, a man and a woman, most likely husband and wife, were packing their belongings into several cardboard boxes. Further down the hall, the passage was nearly blocked due to the number of cardboard boxes other people had piled up outside their apartment. How I hadn't noticed this when I was coming back from my night shift at Freddy's, I had no idea. The sound of a baby crying and complaining children were echoing off the walls as their parents tried to get them under control. As I passed the last door before the stairwell I heard a child screaming inside the apartment to my right.

"I don't wanna go! I don't wanna!" cried what sounded like a young boy, most likely a toddler.

"Sweetie, please. We have no other choice, we got to move. You'll understand when you're older," said the child's mother, in a calming tone. The mother said a few more calming words to her little boy, and soon the crying and screaming turned into gentle sniffling.

I shook my head and pushed open the door to the stairwell, "Don't worry kid… Wherever you're going is better than here, be thankful," I mumbled to myself as I made my way down the stairs, making sure I didn't touch the rusty old handholds or trip over the several passed out drug addicts that were in the way.

* * *

I knocked on the door of room 32, waiting for my kind old landlord Mr. Robinson to open the door. A few seconds ticked before I heard the click of a lock and the jingling of a chain. Then the door opened revealing Mr. Robinson's kind smile.

"Mr. Phillips! I'm glad you came, I have some things I must discuss with you," said Mr. Robinson, moving out of the doorway and into his living room, expecting me to follow.

I walked into the old man's apartment and shut the door behind me. If I didn't know any better I would have thought Mr. Robinson was rich! He had a sofa in the middle of the living room facing a large tv and coffee table, along with a few armchairs surrounding the table as well. The kitchen looked to be fully stocked, and the sweet smell of honeysuckle filled the air, the smell coming from a few scented candles on the kitchen counter.

Mr. Robinson led me over to the living room where he took a seat in one of his green armchairs, gesturing for me to take a seat as well. I sat down on the plush couch and sank into the soft leather, sighing as my sore body relaxed into something comforting.

"You wanted to see me for some reason, Mr. Robinson?" I asked, giving the elder my full attention.

"Yes, yes. I have some good news and some bad news. First the good news. I hereby declare all your payments paid in full," started Mr. Robinson.

But before he could continue, I interrupted, "Wait what!? What do you mean "paid in full"? I haven't paid you yet," I asked, feeling lost.

Mr. Robinson just chuckled and said, "If you will let me finish, Zee, then I'll be getting to that. Now, the second bit, the bad news. I have sold the apartment building to a rather wealthy businessman who plans on tearing it down to build gods know what. That is why I have decided your payments will be canceled and you don't have to pay me. Over the time you have stayed here you have single-handedly kept this place in somewhat running order, fixing broken lights and plumbing, cleaning the stairs and elevators, so on, and so forth. I find that payment enough, Mr. Phillips."

"I didn't do those things to get out of paying rent! I did them because I wanted to help," I argued, feeling bad that I couldn't pay the old man who had shown me such kindness and patience.

"That, Mr. Phillips, is exactly why I'm dropping all your payments. You did all those things out of the kindness of your heart, not expecting or wanting a single thing in return. Now, as you may have noticed, many of my tenants, or used to be tenants, are moving out. I recommend you do the same soon Mr. Phillips, because if the new owner has to send a letter warning you then you'll be fined for having overstayed, and I know you most likely don't have the money to pay for that kind of fine," he explained, finishing up the news he had to tell.

"I… Thank you, Mr. Robinson, thank you so much." I said, being truly thankful for this old man's kind heart.

"I'm sorry this is so sudden, but I had my reasons for selling the place. I'm sure you'll find a new place to stay in no time," smiled Mr. Robinson, once he finished he stood up out of the chair, and I followed suit, raising myself up off the couch. He hobbled over to the door and held it open for me.

"Don't worry about me Mr. Robinson, I'm sure I'll find a place to stay, and if I don't I can always stay at the dorms on campus at my school," I said, giving him a smile and leaving the apartment.

"That's good to hear mah boy," he said, as he closed the door behind me, "That's good to hear."

By the time I got back to my apartment it was already 8:00 am. I didn't bother sticking around, I just grabbed the library books I had that were due and took off towards the university.

* * *

After returning the books to the library I now find myself sprinting across the campus of WaterField University, trying to make it to class on time. I didn't care how sore my body was, nor how much my legs hurt from running, I just kept running hoping to make it to class on time. I was running so fast I actually ran past Eric and his friends who were once again waiting at the stairs to my class building for me. By the time they knew what just happened I was already halfway down the hall and I could hear Eric's faint yell of "Hey!"

I burst into my classroom panting hard, doubling over and resting my hands on my knees as I panted out, "Sorry… I'm… Late… Prof. William…"

"My god, Zee! You look dreadful! What happened to you?" asked Prof. William as he rushed over to me.

"I'm sorry… I had to return… some books to the library, and I lost track of time," I explained, hoping he wouldn't write me up for lateness.

"No, no! Not that! What happened to your neck?" he said, wrapping an arm around my shoulder and supporting my body weight.

I reached up and touched my neck, wincing in pain. My scarf had come off somehow and I had no idea where it was. "I… This is… I-It's nothing! Nothing at all!" I lied, pushing myself to stand up straight and give Prof. William a smile. "Really, I'm fine, don't worry about it, Professor." I rushed off to my seat, climbing the stairs up a few rows before sliding onto an unoccupied bench.

Prof. William just looked at me, then nodded and went back to his desk. "Okay, now that everyone is here let us begin. First off I got some good news and some bad news," he started. _Seems like I'm getting a lot of news today. _I think as Prof. William continues, " Which would my students like to hear first?" he asked, addressing the entire class. Everyone shouted for good news, of course, and caused Prof. William to laugh, "Of course you would have chosen that. Well, the good news is that you have the next month off!" Students whooped and hollered in glee, and once they settled down Prof. William continued, "However, the bad news is. You are expected to work on your test project throughout the entire month! No slacking off! You all know what the test is, build a functioning robotic machine," explained Prof. William.

There was a groan from everyone in the class but me, I looked forward to this, it got me excited and I felt really pumped to get to work on my project. Also, with the month break we get to work on it, that means a month I can avoid Eric and his goons, maybe I could sneak a little RnR and hang out with Lily.

After Prof. William made his announcement he taught the last class that would take place until a month later. It was rather short, just going review and making sure we knew everything we needed. The class was released around lunch, so instead of sticking around to eat the filth they called food I decided I would go over to the pizzeria and say hi to Lily before I head back to my apartment to get some rest.

* * *

As soon as I stepped across the threshold of the pizzeria, that electric like buzzing, which has now morphed into a static-filled scream, flooded my head. Groaning I rubbed my temples till the strange sensation and sounds drifted to the back of my head.

Entering the main party room I made my way over to a booth and sat down, waiting for someone to come take my order. Ever since I entered the building I was consciously trying not to look at the animatronics, but against my better judgment, my eyes found themselves drifting over to the stage and the performing robots, who, like usual, seemed to be ignored by everyone but me. I felt a pang of sympathy for the animatronics, being forced to perform stupid shows day after day, singing the same songs over and over to try and appease the non-listening patrons.

I was dragged out of my thoughts when I felt a sharp tap on my forehead. I looked up to see Lily standing there with a smirk on her face. "Oh. Hey," I greeted, giving her my attention.

"Hey, Zee, everything alright? You seemed to have been lost in your own little world there. I've spent the last 5 minutes trying to get your attention," she said, her smirk being replaced with a concerned frown and a raised eyebrow.

"I'm fine, just tired I suppose," I said shrugging.

"Yeah, the first day on the job will really take it out of some people. Just make sure you rest alright? Oh, and get your neck checked out soon, kay?" she said, scribbling something down on her notepad.

I reached up and felt the raw skin of my neck, having forgotten to look for my scarf. "Oh… Right, sorry bout' that," I said, pulling the scruff of my hoodie up to try and cover my neck. "You're not going to ask what happened?"

"Why do I need to ask when I already know?" she asked, giving me the you-think-your-best-friend-doesn't-know look.

"W-What?!" I exclaimed, "You saw what happened? How?"

"Zee, I've known you for years, and I know that ninety-percent of the time you're hurt in some way. I didn't actually see what happened to you, I've just known you and Eric for so long to know that he did this," she stated.

"Erh… Right… Sorry…" I mumbled, looking down at the table.

"It's fine, Agent Z, just make sure you get yourself checked out, okay? Anyways I'll go get your food put in so you can eat," she chuckled, walking off towards the kitchens.

"Wait, but I didn't order anything," I called after her.

She didn't even turn back around to respond, only held up her yellow notepad and called back, "Medium Pepperoni, and a large Fanta. I know all your favorite things, Zee."

"Damn, she does know me well," I laughed, leaning back in the booth.

I turned my attention back to the animatronics to find all 3 of them looking in my direction. I gulped, feeling a cold chill run down my spine. They didn't remove their gaze from me, and I started to feel extremely freaked out. I had no idea what to do, so I just sat there my breathing starting to quicken, my eyes roaming to find something to look at asides the animatronics. I started cracking my knuckles again, trying anything to calm my nerves. The anxiety I was feeling was unreal, and the buzzing in my head wasn't helping either.

A few minutes later, after I calmed down when the animatronics stopped staring at me, Lily came back with my pizza and drink, and since I was here she decided to take her break now and hang out with me for a little while. She also insisted on paying for the food since she ate some of it. I tried to decline but she put her foot down, and when Lily wants to do something that thing is gonna get done whether anyone likes it or not.

We chatted for a little bit, talking about what's been going on with ourselves. I finally came out and told her the truth about what happened between me and Eric the other day, and how he tried to strangle me to death. And as usual, her big sister switch got flipped and she tried to talk me into calling the police or letting her deal with him. I refused, however, knowing full well there wasn't any evidence to support my claim, and I didn't want Lily to come and save me... again. 10 minutes later we had finished the pizza, and I sucked the last bit of Fanta out of my cup before Lily had to get back to work.

I got up and walked around the pizzeria to check out the rest of the place, really the only place to go was the main room, but I needed to stretch my legs. So I just walked around the edge of the room coming close to the west hallway when I saw something I hadn't noticed before. There was a doorway covered by purple curtains with white hollow stars patterned across the purple fabric. There was a sign in front of the curtain covered doorway reading "-Sorry!- OUT OF ORDER". I was about to push the curtains aside to have a peek in when I heard a muffled "dammit" coming from behind one of the arcade machines to my right. One of them was pulled out away from the wall so there was space for someone to fit behind it.

I walked over and looked behind the machine to find Mr. Charles on his knees fiddling with some wiring inside the back of the game cabinet. "Mr. Charles, is everything alright?" I asked, startling the middle-aged man.

"Oh! Dear god, Mr. Phillips! You startled me," he exclaimed, standing up and brushing off his brown suit pants. "And to answer your question, no everything is not alright, another of the arcade machines has broken down and I was trying to fix it, to no avail of course. I'm afraid it will have to be scrapped, we don't have enough funds to replace it."

"Oh… That's too bad. Shame too, it's one of my favorites," I said, looking at the large yellow circle with a pizza slice gap cut out of it, that was on the side of the machine.

"Yes, Ol' Pacman was one of the kids' favorites. Now they won't be able to see him again," sighed Mr. Charles.

"Well, I'm not sure about that," I said, an idea coming to my mind.

"What do you mean?" asked Mr. Charles.

"I'm an engineering student at WaterField University, I could try to fix it for you," I said, patting the side of the machine.

"Really? That would be wonderful! Except" said Mr. Charles, his signature creepy smile spreading across his face.

"Great! Uh... Do you have a toolbox I could use by chance?" I asked.

"Yes of course it's in the parts and service room backstage, I'll go get it for you," he said, starting to head off in that direction.

"No, don't worry about it, I'll get it. I'm sure you've got lots of work to do," I said.

"Oh, well okay. Thanks, Mr. Phillips, this will really help a lot," he responded, giving me his signature big creepy smile before he left for his office.

"Alright then, I'll go get the toolbox and anything else I might need and -hopefully- fix this thing up!" I said to myself, walking over to the stage.

Reaching the stage I climbed up a couple of steps that were hidden behind the large red curtains and entered the backstage area. There wasn't much back here besides some boxes, lighting equipment that looked to be several decades old, and a few broken amps. However, against the back wall was a single metal door with a black plaque on it saying "Employees Only" in white letters. It looked really out of place with the rest of the building, but who was I to judge? I sat in an office with 8 inches of metal for doors and bulletproof glass.

As I made my way up to the door a strange sense of deja vu hit me. I looked at the door cautiously before shaking the feeling off and grabbing the handle. Slowly I turned the handle downwards, hearing the click of the mechanism, the door popped open just a crack. Opening the door all the way I gazed into the dark abyss in front of me. Reaching into the room I placed my hand on the wall next to the door and felt around for a light switch.

After searching for a few seconds my hand landed on the familiar feel of blunt poky plastic, and I flipped the small switch, illuminating the room with an eerie white light from a single lightbulb in the middle of the ceiling. I stepped into the room and looked around. However, where I expected to find a room full of boxes and spare parts for the animatronics, I found both that and more. Several metal shelves were pressed against the walls holding boxes of what I guessed were spare parts, along with the head masks for the animatronics, which creeped me out. In the middle of the room was a metal table with a classic red toolbox resting atop it.

I made a beeline for the toolbox trying to ignore the spare masks that seemed to follow my every move. As I grabbed the toolbox's handle, I heard the gentle laughter of a child. I turned around scanning the room, thinking that some kid had followed me into the back.

"Hello, is someone there?" I called out, yet as I looked around the room it seemed devoid of life, except for a single spider in the upper left corner of the room. I shook my head and lifted the toolbox off the table before walking back towards the door. Exiting the room and closing the door behind me, I made my way to leave the backstage when I heard it again.

"Hehe," giggled a girlish voice from behind me.

"Who's there?" I asked, turning around hoping to catch the kid that was poking fun at me. "You're not supposed to be back here."

"It's me!" whispered a voice as soft and smooth as the breeze on a cool summer's eve.

"It's me who? Listen, you're not supposed to be back here, I need you to come out of hiding and leave the backstage!" I said, trying to be commanding, of course, the words I said were correct but the way it came out made me sound like a scared little girl.

When no answer came, and no more sounds graced my ears asides those of the kids in the front room and the cheesy music, I left the backstage, feeling like someone was watching me.

Arriving back at the broken down Pacman machine, I got to work, trying my best to fix the decades' old arcade machine. I hardly noticed as the hours flew by, getting wrapped up in my own little world of machines and technology. I had finished fixing the Pacman machine hours ago, and if I was really paying attention or thinking correctly I should have gone back to my apartment to get some rest, but me being me, I ended up working on some other arcade machines like Galaga, Donkey Kong, Ms. Pacman, and even an incredibly old version of Mortal Kombat!

As I was finishing up fixing Asteroids; which had nothing wrong with it asides the controller being stuck and unusable, I felt a tap on my shoulder and I looked up to see Mr. Charles standing behind me with a raised eyebrow and a slight smile.

"Mr. Charles! I fixed Pacman and a few other of the arcade machines as you can see," I said, gesturing to the line of repaired machines that were up against the wall, with a screwdriver.

"Yes! Thank you very much, Mr. Phillips! This will help greatly. However I'm afraid that you may have gotten caught up in your work, it's almost midnight! Better get ready for your shift Mr. Phillips."

I looked up at the clock rubbing my eyes under my glasses, and as the numbers came into focus I realized it was 11:25 at night, I had 35 minutes till my shift started!

"Oh… I was here that long?" I asked more to myself than anything.

"Yes, you were. Now, today has been rather busy for me, and I'm going to lock up and head home," he warned, irritation in his voice.

"Uhh, right. I guess I'll see you tomorrow then, sir." I said, awkwardly.

"Yes, yes. Very good. Goodnight Mr. Phillips," he replied, sounding distracted.

Mr. Charles ended the conversation there and left. I stood there watching him retreat till I heard the crackly jingle of the door opening, and then the click of the deadbolt lock that kept the two, very breakable, glass doors from opening. I yawned and rubbed my eyes again. I wasn't tired just because I had been working all day, but rather because for some reason the dream that I've been having since I was 7 seemed to be getting more and more realistic, causing me to wake up in the middle of the night and earlier in the morning.

With the information that I had only probably 30 minutes till my shift started, and those 3 animatronics started wandering about trying to kill me, I packed up the toolbox, and instead of returning it to the backstage parts and service room, I just took it with me to my office.

Entering the small cramped room that was my office I placed the toolbox under the desk and sat down in the somewhat comfortable office chair. I sighed as my body sank into the soft yet cracked leather of the chair. I was so tired I felt like I could just fall asleep right there and then. As my eyes shut and I leaned my head back, thinking I could just rest my eyes for a few minutes, I heard the lights crackle and hum. My eyes shot open as the click of lights going off one by one echoed through the building, till the entire building was drenched in darkness asides for the singular lightbulb above my head.

I picked up the tablet that was laying on top of the desk and opened up the cameras. I checked the stage first, finding all three animatronics standing there creepily. I checked the time and saw it read 12:05. My shift had started 5 minutes ago, and yet it felt like it was only just 11:30 a few seconds ago. I sighed, figuring my lack of sleep had something to do with my mind messing with me today.

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw a flashing red light, looking up I noticed the phone had another message on it. Perhaps this one would actually be helpful this time. I pressed the play button and the recorded message began to play.

"Umm… Hello? Hello, hello? Uhh, well if you're hearing this then you made it to your second night! Congrats" said the still annoying male voice. "Umm… R-Right, I won't take as long this time, Freddy and her friends tend to become more active each night… So you might want to check the camera while I talk"

I opened up the tablet again, doing as he suggested and taking a peek at the cameras. Bonnie and Chica were already gone from the stage, but Freddy remained where she was. As I flipped through each camera, I found Bonnie squeezed into a janitor's closet that was located somewhere in the west hallway. And Chica was in the main party room creepily staring at the camera with her mouth agape, her white pinprick eyes staring into my very soul.

"B-But you don't need to worry! I'm sure you'll be fine! A-Anyways, Be careful tonight… I-It seems whenever Freddy and the others start moving around, Foxy ends up waking up… Somehow… I-I-I'm not sure how that works, but I'm no engineer. J-Just keep an eye on pirates cove alright?"

"WAIT WHAT?!" I shouted at the phone, staring at it in disbelief. "There is another one of these animatronic abominations! ?Are you kidding me!" But before I could finish yelling at the phone, the phone guy continued.

"S-So y-yeah… Umm, I think that's about it. Don't forget to use your door lights, there are blind spots in your camera's view that won't pick up the animatronics if they are hiding in it. Uhh, keep an eye on Foxy, and shut the doors _only _when _absolutely_ necessary... Uhh… Y-Yeah t-that's it. WAIT! I almost forgot! And under _no circumstances _leave the office! A-Alright, n-now that's it. H-Hope to see you tomorrow night." And with that, the phone clicked off leaving me once again in the eerie silence of the pizzeria. The only noise provided being the hum of the dying lightbulb above me, and the slight rattle of the old rusty desk fan that wafted a cool breeze into my face.

I sat there stunned, trying to process the information that was just dumped on me, when I remembered I had killer robots to stop from… well… killing me. Instantly I checked the door lights, thankfully none of the animatronics had managed to get that far. Going back to the cameras, I found Bonnie just standing in the west hall, looking all creepy with the 2 white dots for eyes staring at the camera, and the sputtering light that hung near her, just keeping her face in the shadows. As I flipped through the cameras, I got to the one that was broken and only transmitted audio. From the tablet came the sound of crashing pots and other noises you would find in the kitchen. _That must be Chica, _I thought.

Flipping over to the main stage, I found Freddy had moved, except not from her position. Now she was staring directly at the camera, her eyes also consisting of 2 marble sized dots, that like all the others seemed to stare into my soul. Remembering that I had to check pirates cove, I switched over to Cam 1C (Pirates Cove), and what I found caused me to drop the tablet on the ground as I lept in my chair, my heart racing, and sweat dripping down my forehead. There had been a yellow colored ball of light staring at the camera when I had switched over, but now that I picked the tablet back up and looked again, there was nothing but a slight part in the purple curtains.

"That must be Foxy then," I said aloud, trying to fill the void of silence. Shaking myself out, trying to regain control of my racing mind, which still had that insistent static scream in the back of my head which I was trying to ignore, I took a deep breath and steadied myself. Leaning over to the left door and pressing the light button, I shot back as the purple face of Bonnie appeared, illuminated by the light. Then as if something had possessed my body, my hand shot out faster then I thought I could move it, and punched the large red button, resulting in 8 inches of steel to slam down between me and a one-way trip to heaven.

After taking a breath to calm my nerves, I heard a slight tip tap coming from the east hall. Flying across the room I slammed my hand on the door button, causing another industrial steel door to slide down and protect me. Slowly, with shaking hands, I pressed the light button to illuminate the east hall, and standing right outside the window looking in was Chica. Her bib seemed stained with something red, which I hoped was just tomato sauce.

Checking the right door, and making sure Bonnie was gone I re-opened the door. I checked the left door's light once more to find Chica still there looking inside. I sighed and left the door closed. I picked up the tablet once more from the floor and checked the time. It was only 1:30 AM and I was on less than 80% power. Checking the cameras again, I found Bonnie back in the main party room. Switching over to pirates cove I once again found something staring back at me. This time, however, it was another animatronic, instead of the floating yellow light that I had seen before, which I'm guessing was this animatronic's eyes, or eye more like it. This animatronic was much different from the others. Unlike the others, this one was fully clothed, wearing a full pirate getup, all except the hat that is. The figure was clearly a fox, it had red fur that was so dirty it looked like a dark burgundy color. She wore ripped and tattered brown trousers that came down to just past her knees, and a white blouse with a black corset cinched around her midsection, causing her breasts to be pushed slightly upwards. On her face, she had an eyepatch that covered her right eye, which was probably the same yellow color as her left, and finally, she had 2 golden ring-shaped earrings pierced on her left ear. Her right hand was in fact not a hand at all, rather a classic pirate hook that looked sharp enough to pierce through metal.

But, even though she may have been fully clothed unlike the others, she was just in as bad a shape as the others, if not worse. Her jaw hung off its hinges, revealing sharp teeth, a few of which were golden in color. Her left hand was nothing but the metal skeletal hand of her endoskeleton, her fur was ripped and had holes in places. Her corset and blouse also were ripped and riddled with holes, giving me sight into her internal workings. I could see her endoskeleton through the holes in the outfit, it was dented and scratched, with wires hanging out here and there. Wires hung from her joints in several places, and all in all, she looked like she was about to fall apart. Literally.

Like before when I saw the state the other animatronics were in, I felt a pang of sadness and pity run through me as I took in the view of the once glorious pirate fox, now reduced to nothing more than a pile of scrap hidden away in an unused room.

I switched the camera view back to the main stage to find Freddy no longer staring at the camera. I checked the right door, and seeing Chica had left, opened it to conserve power. Flipping through the camera views, I found Chica in the bathroom hallway standing in a dark corner, Bonnie was in the main room just standing there. Sighing, I checked the time, 2:49 AM.

_Just a couple of more hours and I'll be out of here,_ I thought, leaning back in the chair. Grabbing the toolbox I had brought with me I rummaged through it trying to find anything I might be able to use. Screwdriver? Unless I can get close enough, and have them hold still long enough to unscrew their bolts this is a no. Wrench? Nope. Hammer? Maybe. Wires? Not sure what I would do with that. A bouncy ball? Well, it's not going to save my life but it may save me from being bored the rest of the night.

Reaching in and grabbing the small sphere of blue rubber I bounced it off my desk and caught it. "Not much but it's something," I said to myself as I continued to idly bounce the ball and check the cameras. Not being able to find bonnie anywhere I shut the left door and pressed the light button. I could see Bonnie's shadow being cast on the wall through the window, showing me that she is right outside the door. "That's a good thing to note," I said, pulling out a little scrap of paper and a broken pencil from the toolbox. I scribbled the note down on the paper so it read: "Bonnie cast's shadow through the window when the door is shut - shut door and then check if there."

Clicking the light once more the shadow of the big purple bunny was gone, so I opened the door and checked again just to make sure, and as I suspected she was gone. I switched over to the kitchen camera, and the clanging sound of pots and pans came pouring out of the tablet's small speakers.

"Alright, Chica's in the kitchen, now what about you ol' Foxy?" I said, switching over to pirates cove. My jaw dropped when I saw the curtains to pirates cove wide open with no fox insight.

"Where'd she go? Where did she go?!" I panicked, flipping through cameras. Just as I switched to the west hall camera I saw a blur rush past the camera, then I heard the clanging of metal, like heavy machinery. I poked my head outside the west door and to my utter horror what I saw running down the hall at me made me lose control of my bladder. I was frozen, it felt like time had slowed down. Running down the hall at me was Foxy, hook, and arm raised as if she was chasing something... Or someone. Her jaw hung loosely as it rattled about, her sharp teeth glistening in the dim flickering light of the hall. I watched as she grew closer and closer, and just as I thought I was about to die, something took hold of me! I jerked back into the office slamming the door shut just as Foxy came into view of the doorframe. The next thing I hear is the banging and scraping of metal against metal as an ungodly screech came from the other side of the door.

"That… was too close…" I panted, my heart pounding in my chest. As the banging and scraping died down and eventually stopped I checked the cameras again. Freddy was on stage, Chica was in the main room, Bonnie was in the janitor's closet, she seems to like it there. And Foxy was back in her cove, peaking out from curtains looking at the camera with a grimace, or at least as close to a grimace as someone can achieve with half their mouth hanging off their jaw.

I checked the time on the tablet to see when my shift ended when suddenly the sound of the grandfather clock located in the front of the pizzeria started dinging. I sighed and sunk down into the chair, and then from the chair onto the floor. _That is it. My shift is over. Now I can go home and relax for a little bit. _I thought to myself. I picked myself up off the ground and headed out the right door to try and stay as far away from that damn fox as possible!

"So… tired…" I mumbled, rubbing my eyes, "Time to go home and get some much-needed sleep."


End file.
